Here's Why Obama Thinks His Foreign Policy Is Working

President Barack Obama has faced new scrutiny over his foreign
policy ambitions lately, with the crisis in Ukraine emboldening those
who say he hasn't been forceful enough in his dealings with
America's adversaries.

In an extensive, and blunt interview with Bloomberg's Jeffrey
Goldberg published Sunday that focused on his
policies in the Middle East, Obama pushed back against arguments
he hasn't asserted himself enough on the foreign policy front.
Obama cited the example of the Syrian "red line" as clear evidence his
strategies are working.

"Let’s be very
clear about what happened. I threatened kinetic strikes on Syria
unless they got rid of their chemical weapons. When I made that
threat, Syria denied even having chemical weapons. In the span of
10 days to two weeks, you had their patrons, the Iranians and the
Russians, force or persuade Assad to come clean on his chemical
weapons, inventory them for the international community, and
commit to a timeline to get rid of them," Obama said.

"And the process has moved
more slowly than we would like, but it has actually moved.
... That would not have happened had the Iranians
said, 'Obama’s bluffing, he’s not actually really willing to take
a strike.' If the Russians had said, 'Ehh, don’t worry about it,
all those submarines that are floating around your coastline,
that’s all just for show.' Of course they took it seriously!
That’s why they engaged in the policy they did."

Syria's pledges on destroying chemical weapons, however, have
been "fraying" in recent weeks. The New York Times reported about two weeks
ago that the Syrian government is seeking another delay
for a looming deadline in the agreed upon timeline for the
elimination of its chemical weapons stockpile. At this point, the
original June 30 deadline for Syria to destroy all of its
chemical weapons — mandated by a United Nations Security Council
resolution — looks almost impossible.

It is unclear whether the U.N. and the Organization
for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons would approve of any
extension, and how that would recalibrate the Obama
administration's calculus. The administration has continued to
assert that "all options are on the table" — including military
action — with respect to Syria.

"This chapter has proven decisively that when it comes to soft
power, the power of attraction, Vladimir Putin has no game," a
senior Obama administration official said during a background
briefing with reporters Sunday night. "So he’s left with hard
power. And it’s a very dangerous game to play in Ukraine because
the Ukrainian people are not going to stand for it, and nor is
the international community."